Electric sparking igniter for explosive-motors.



PATENTED AUG. 30, 1904.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 1903.

2 SHBETSSHEET 1I NO MODEL.

Mana es.- Q. C @041; i. L Kmdw No. 768,687. I v PATENTED AUG. 30, 1.904.

L. J. PHELPS.

ELECTRIC SPARKING IGNITBR FOR BXPLOSIVE MOTORS.

. APPLICIATION FILED APR. 9, 1903. N0 MODEL. 2 SHEETS-SHEET a jig- .2,

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UNITED STATES Patented August 30, 1904.

PATENT Frrcn.

LUCIUS J. PHELPS, OF STONEHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO PHELPS MOTOR VEHICLE COMPANY, OF STONEHAM, MASSACHU- SETTS, A CORPORATION OF MAINE.

ELECTRIC SPARKllIG IGNITER FOR EXPLOSlVE-IVIOTORS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 768,687, dated August 30, 1904.

Application filed April 9, 1903. Serial No. 151,840. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, LUoIUs J. PHELPS, of Stoneham, in the county of Middlesex and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Sparking Igniters for Explosive-Motors, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to make-and-break igniting mechanisms for explosion engines, and includes among its objects the reduction of complication in such structures and an increase of durability, accessibility, and ease of repair.

One of the principal characteristics of the invention is the facility with which the movable electrode which extends into the combustion-chamber of the engine may be removed for inspection, cleaning, or other purpose. In this way I attain an advantage which is characteristic of very few make-andbreak sparkers, it being usually a matter of great difficulty and labor to reach and remove the electrode.

Of the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 represents a vertical sectional view of an explosion-engine provided with the improved igniter. Fig. 2 represents a perspective view of parts of the igniter. Fig. 3 represents a perspective view of the igniter-cam. Fig. 4 represents a perspective view of one of the Fig. 5 represents a horizontal section, partly in plan, showing the mechanism for advancing and retarding the spark with relation to the piston-stroke. Fig. 6 represents a section on line 6 6 of Fig. 1'.

The same reference characters indicate the same parts in all the figures.

Referring to the drawings, 10 indicates the cylinder of an explosion-engine having a water jacket or chamber 11 for cooling its walls, a piston 12, a crank-shaft 13, a crank 14, and a connecting-rod 15. The engine, as shown, is a four-cycle one, and hence has a half-speed shaft 16. On this is fixed the igniter-cam 17,

which is a projection formed on a collar 18, secured by a set-screw 19 to the shaft 16.

20 is a fixed electrode, and 21 is a sliding electrode-bar guided in a bearing-sleeve 22, which traverses the water jacket or chamber 11, whereby the heat of the explosion-chamber is prevented from deteriorating the electrode-bar. The upper end of said sleeve projects into the explosion-chamber and is carried close to the tip of the electrode-bar, so as to allow but a slight exposure of said bar within the explosion-chamber. At the lower end of the sleeve 22 is a stufiing-box 23. It will be observed that the sleeve 22 has a bearing on the electrode-bar only at the ends of said sleeve, while between said bearing portions is an enlargement or chamber permitting the accumulation of soot, oil, and other matter which might otherwise obstruct the free movement of the electrode.

The lower end of the electrode-bar 21 passes through a hole in the short leg formed at the head 28 of a substantially L-shaped sliding trip-dog 24, whose lower end enters the crankcasing 25 of the engine through an aperture 26. The electrode 21 has a head 27, residing underneath the head of the trip-dog, and said bar is supported by a spring 29, attached to the dog. This spring has a coil 30, resting against the long arm of the dog 24, an arm 31, residing in a slot 32 in the head 27 and a substantially U shaped arm or hook 33, passed through a hole 34 in the dog. An advantage of this arrangement is the ease with which a new spring 29 may be inserted in case the old spring breaks. The function of the spring 29 is to allow an upward movement of the dog 24 after the electrode-bar 21 is in contact with the fixed electrode 20 and the jar occasioned by the rapid action of the parts sometimes breaks the spring. The odd springs are preferably furnished with one limb of the arm bent out straight, as represented by dotted lines in Fig. 4, and to attach the spring this straight portion is inserted through the hole 34 and bent downwardly, the arm 31 being snapped under the head 27 A spring 35, interposed between the dog 34 and stuffing-box 23, depresses said dog toward the cam 17, which latter has a gradual rise and an abrupt termination which quickly l separates the electrodes. Eiy reason of the of set or L-shaped coi'istruction of the trip-dog 2-1 ll am enabled to slide the electrode-bar 21 out of its bearing without disturbing the tripdog. Normally the electrode-bar is in line with a removable cover-plate i5 on the crankcase of the motor, held in place by one or more swing-catches e6, so that should spring 29 break and allow the electrode-bar to drop the latter will not fall out and be lost on the road, as the cover-plate forms a stop which prevents it from fullywithdrawing from its bearing-sleeve 22. If it is then desired to remove the electrode-bar, this may be done by removing the cover-plate a5 and sliding the bar fully out of its sleeve. At any time the electrode-bar may be removed in this manner by first removing the cover-1; late and releasing the electrode-bar from the arm of spring 29.

To receive the impact of the return of the dog 24 toward the shaft 16 and prevent the dog from indenting the shaft, I provide a buf fer-block 36, guided in a recess 37 in the shaft 16 and yieldingly projected outwardly by a spring 38, the head of said buffer-block projecting slightly under the collar 18, as shown in Fig. 3, whereby the outward movement of the buffer-block is limited.

The dog 21 normally slides against a projection 39 on the crank-ease and a cam-bar etO, its upper end being guided by the lower end of the electrode-bar 21. The dog has a pro jection ll on its upper end overlying but nor mally not meeting the projection 39. 1f, however, the dog should drop or its lower end be displaced by derangement of the parts or by backward rotation of the cam 17, the projection il will hang on the projection 39 and sustain the dog. The lower end of the dog 24: is free to swing to the left as viewed in Fig. 1, to permit the backward rotation of the igniter-cam 17.

The cam-bar 40 is slid. horizontally by suitable connections (not shown) under control of the operator and is provided with an inclined surface a2, Fig. 5, which swings the lower end of the dog 2% when the bar is moved, and hence retards or advances the ignition with respect to the stroke of the piston 12. The electrode-bar 21 has a loose lit in the head of the dog 24 to permit the swinging movement of the latter.

The lixed electrode 20 is insulated in a plug as, and it and the metal of the engine are included in an ordinary ignitingcircuit 14. The electrode 20 and the electrode-bar 21 are eccentric to each other, as indicated in Fig. 6, and the former is rotatable in its plug, so as to permit new portions of its. contacting surface, which latter, as shown, is transverse to the axis of the plug to be brought into cooperation with the electrode-bar 21.

I. do not confine myself to the exact details of construction herein set forth.

1 claim 1. in a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, an electrodc-actuating device, a trip-dog acted on thereby, an electrode operated on by said trip-dog and removable from operative positionindependently of the tripdog. and a resilient connection between said trip-dog and electrode normally holding the latter in. operative position.

2. In a make-andbreak igniter for explosion-engines, a sliding electrode, and a tripdog embracing said electrode and having an offset sliding connection therewith permitting the removal of the electrode without removing the trip-dog.

3. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, a sliding electrode, a trip-dog having an offset connection therewith permitting the removal of the electrode without removing the trip dog, and a spring connecting the electrode and trip-dog and normally holding the former in operative position.

t. In a make-and-lneak igniter for explosion-engines, a sliding electrode yieldingly projected away from operative position, a spring normally sustaining the same in operative position, and a movable stop to prevent complete withdrawal of said electrode upon the breakage of the spring.

5. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, an igniter-cam, a substantially L-shaped sliding trip-dog having one arm engaged by said cam, a sliding electrode connected with the other 211111, and a spring connecting said trip-dog and electrode.

6. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, a motor having a crank-case provided with a movable cover, an igniter-cam, a trip-dog actuated thereby and having an offset, a sliding electrode engaged. with said offset and alincd with said cover when the latter is in normal position, and a resilient connection between said trip-dog and electrode.

7. In a make-and-bxeak igniter for explosion-engines, a movable electrode, a trip-dog, and a coiled-wire spring interposed between said members and having a bent arm attaching it to one of the members, said member havingmeans interlocking with the arm and wherefrom the arm is disconnectibleby being straightened.

8. An electrode-bar, a trip-dog arranged to produce endwise movement of said bar, and a spring interposed between said members and exerting endwise pressure on. the electrodebar, said spring havin one arm resting on one of the members and disconnectible therefrom by a swinging movement, and. another arm hooked onto the other member.

9. in a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, a sliding electrode-bar formed with a groove, a trip-dog, and a spring having a coil resting against said dog, an arm occupying said groove, and a second arm detachably hooked onto the dog.

10. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, a rotary cam-shaft, a yieldinglyprojected buffer thereon, a collar fitted to said shaft and limiting the outward movement of the buffer, and an igniter-cam formed on said collar.

11. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, a movable electrode, a trip-dog adjustably connected therewith, an ignitercam acting on said dog, a sliding bar having a cam-incline acting against one side of the dog for moving said dog to advance or retard the ignition, and means yieldingly projecting the dog into cooperative position with respect to said cam-incline.

12. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, a movable electrode, a sliding trip-dog adjustably connected therewith, an igniter-cam for sliding said dog, an adjustingcam for varying the position of the end of said dog engaged by the igniter-cam, said dog being movable into and out of cooperative position with respect to the adjusting-cam, and a spring yieldingly impelling said dog into cooperation with said cams.

18. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, an axially-sliding electrode, a sliding trip-dog extended substantially parallel with said electrode to a trip-point in the opposite direction from the igniting end of the electrode, an igniter-cam acting on said trip-point, and an adjustable connection between said dog and electrode permitting the tive position.

14. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, a movable electrode, a rotary igniter-cam, a stationary trip-dog guide, and a trip-dog interposed between said cam and electrode and slidable on the guide, said tripdog having a hook overhanging the guide for pivotally sustaining the dog during backward rotation of said cam.

15. In a makeand-break igniter for explosion-engines, a movable electrode, and a plug in the cylinder-wall axially parallel with but eccentric to said movable electrode, said plug having an insulated electrode provided with a contact-face transverse to the axis of the plug, said insulated electrode being manually adjustable rotatively in the plug to present said contact-face in fresh contacting relations with the movable electrode.

16. In a make-and-break igniter for explosion-engines, a motor-cylinder, a sliding electrode-bar entering the combustion-chamber thereof, and a bearing for said electrode, said electrode and bearing being relatively so constructed as to form a collecting-chamber between them.

In testimony whereof I have aflixed my signature in presence of two witnesses.

LUGIUS J PHELPS.

Witnesses:

SILAs DEAN, SARAH A. DEAN. 

